Busy Lizzie or Bust? Should I Plant Impatiens in 2019?

Is it safe to plant impatiens this year? 

Appearances can be misleading.  If nursery shelves are any indication, then impatiens walleriana seem to be a go this year.  Downy mildew has now plagued this staple of the shade garden for at least a half dozen years.  Sadly, the disease  shows no signs of letting up.

Yet it's tough to pass up those lovely flats of pinks and salmons each spring.  But robust, healthy looking plants may whither before season's end, leaving the garden barren when it should have been poppin'. 

Cautious gardeners following expert advice held back from planting colorful  bizzies for the recommended three years--only to find that the disease had either remained in the soil or the dastardly spores had hitchhiked in on new purchases.  

Thus, in 2019, proceed with caution.  At the shop, inspect the undersides of baby plants for spots or dots.  Plants in drier areas or locations which did not host infected plants in prior years.  Impatiens mildew is a water mold. Irrigate in the morning to avoid moisture clinging to leaves overnight.  

Give it a cautious go if you must, and hope for the best. 

Begonia Shade Border

Impatiens are tropical natives.  The tiny seeds are difficult, but not impossible to start.  The moist environs of a greenhouse makes it a good host for killer spores.

Downy mildew only affects one breed, impatiens walleriana, 

Plan B calls for substitution of colorful alternatives:

Bye Bye Bizzie Lizzies! What to Plant Instead of Impatiens

Begonia are the new Impatiens

Coleus Revisted ~ Should I Plant Coleus instead of Impatiens?

Experiment or adapt.  Versatility is the mainstay of gardening.  

Made for the Shade:

Best Shade Annuals

Plants that Thrive Where the Sun Doesn't Shine ~ Best Shade Perennials

Impatiens Report 2018

Impatiens 2016 ~ The Blight is Back

Best Shade Annuals

WHAT ARE THE TOP ANNUALS FOR SHADE GARDENS?

Annuals are one season showstoppers.

Typically native to warmer climates south of zone eight, annuals flourish in the summer months then die back after the fall frost.

Unlike perennials, which survive the winter months reappearing in late spring, annuals quickly establish, then bloom until frost.

New Guinea Impatiens are disease free

The majority of mass produced annuals require full to partial sunlight. 

Choices are  limited for shade gardeners craving some color, but blooms that thrive in full to partial shade are readily available.

1.  Impatiens:  Fabulous, but risky.  The moldy blight overwinters and could take three to five years before it clears out.  Replanting risks a return to the starting block.  If planting make sure the area is well drained.

2.   Begonia:  Does well in dappled shade.  More disease resistant.  Chose a variety with green leaves
as burgundy and brown stems don't show as well. White pops in the shade.  Pink and red blooms are smaller and do not show as well.  In the fall begonia become a mounding beauty, with a spectacular show before the cold sets in.  Die back in late fall is quick.  Removal is easy as roots are minimal.

2.  Coleus.  Fast becoming a favorite, coleus comes in a plethora of beautiful jewel tones.  Great for the border.

3.  Minimulus/Monkey Flower:  The white blooms are small, ringed in soft purples and pinks and resemble tiny monkey faces.    These rascals require little pruning. 

4.  Pansies:   Deep, stunning and vibrant colors, these are hardy annuals.  Die back occurs during the
hottest summer months.  Cut back and move to a shady location for a second bloom in the fall.  Pansies and violas often survive to spring if sheltered or following a mild winter.

Group in drifts or combinations throughout the yard or in pots.

There's a peacefulness in the shade garden that cannot be measured by the sun.

In early spring, fall-planted bubs will naturalize and flourish before trees bloom.

Observing a shaded garden from a sunny outpost, it appears monotonous.  Not much color is needed, but adding a bit beckons the garden visitor to the coolness under the canopy.

Somewhat Shady:

Best Shade Perennials

Turtlehead and other Fall Bloomers

Finding Piet

CREATE YOUR OWN OUDOLF GARDEN

Piet Oudolf transports the magic of the meadow to the heart of the city.

My first exposure to his work was accidental.  Headed to Grant Park from our downtown Chicago hotel, we passed through an inconspicuous gateway into the Lurie Garden.

Oudolf's creation was in full bloom.  Children padded through the trickling stream-like fountains. Tourists cooled their dangling feet--a respite from the scorching pavement.

High Line Park New York City

In August the garden was a riot of purples and red.  The sturdy Lake Michigan winds oscillated the dancing grasses. 

Later, walks along the High Line near the Chelsea district of New York offered another view of Piet's creative work.  An abandoned railway overpass was transformed into a pathway strewn with calming native plants with trees swaying in the Hudson River breeze. Thousands fill the walkways each day.

Soon Detroit will host a natural Oudolf wonder on Belle Isle--capitalizing on the force of the prevailing winds from the Detroit River at the mouth of Lake St. Clair. 

High Line walkway

How to emulate the master? 

The grounds around my home are (loosely) patterned after English gardens both formal and cottage in deference to the style of the home and the heritage of my beloved.  No place for a pasture.  But, like most gardeners, the plots expanded rather than contracted. 

Two years ago a cottage garden replaced a tumble of ground cover at the base of a stone retaining wall.  It was the perfect landing place for orphan plants, but filled out quickly,  The addition of a gravel border path should have sealed the boundary, leaving the ramble weed hillside below untouched.

High Line in summer

Trouble is, gardeners know no borders.  A year later, the scruffy hillside became the host to a newborn Piet-inspired meadow.

Piet Oudolf'design concepts are simple:

1.  Use noninvasive native plants that will reseed freely and provide winter interest.  No cutting back is required.

2.  Follow the 70/30 rule.  Seventy percent of the plants should be "fillers."  Fillers such as grasses provide volume, height and movement.  They are planted to provide the signature "haze" or "blur" that is the trademark of an Oudolf garden.  Thirty percent of the plants should provide seasonal color through blooms or berries.  Favored colors deeper hues of purple, red and gold. 

Winter Interest High Line New York

3.  Plant in drifts and swaths, the opposite of the riot of plants found in a cottage garden.  Frame the edges with the blur of tassels of grass or big-headed blooms like Joe Pye weed. 

4.  Plant in volume. 

5.  Repeat themes. 

6.  Plant in layers.


before

7.  Plant for all seasons but be aware of the sun or shade requirements of sprouts.

At the end of season, vendors at the county farmer's market sell  plants at a deep discount.  The initial inhabitants of a pasture garden need not be pretty, only healthy.  Thus the cranky vendor occupying the last stall nearly smiled at the offer of two dollars each for a couple dozen of astilbes and pampas grasses.

Clearing the area was the most labor intensive part of the project.  The largest and deepest taproot weeds were dug out by hand.  Those with shallow roots required a stirrup or rake.

The plants were arranged,  to best emulate the Oudolf grid.  We planted using our "patented" wedge method.  We finalized the plantings, then generously sprinkled free wood chips to reduce the occurrence of weeds. 

after

Our little pasture is shaded so we chose astilbe and pampas grass for the fillers then catmint (nepeta) and variegated hosta as thrillers.  More plants will be added in the fall as other plots are thinned.



FOUND GARDENS:

FREDERIK MEIJER SCULPTURE GARDEN



LAFAYETTE GREENS DETROIT